Is membership a lot of work?

[mam543]

Hello everybody. I am new here and am considering joining the DVC. One of my apprehensions about the club is that it seems like it would be a lot of stress maintaining your points every year. I understand that if I'm not going to use my points by year end, I can bank them, but what if I only use a portion of those points next year? It seems like every year there will be a mad rush to make a last minute trip to WDW just to get my money's worth. How hard is it to rent points to others? Is there much demand for that? Then there's the whole no-maid service issue. How inconvenient is that really? Also, based on the posts I've read, it seems that it's hard to get BWV ressies in the 7 month window.
I go to WDW every year and based on my calculations it seems economically beneficial in the long run but I would like to shorten my break-even time with efficient use of points. Any thoughts that anybody has would be most appreciated.

 

[jennybobenny]

No, I definately don't think being a DVC member is alot of work. DVC trips do involve some planning but no more than a regular non-DVC trip to Disney would require - actually it may be less since with DVC there isn't the added hassle of searching for discounted rooms. We haven't had any problems using our points, or remembering to bank the leftovers. If you plan on vacationing every year then I don't think you'll ever be in a position of losing previously banked points.

As for the housekeeping, I was wondering if it would bother us but I'm happy to report we barely noticed it. We made our beds and threw a load of towels into the wash before we left for the parks in the morning, then threw the towels in the dryer in the afternoon. No sweat. It was actually kind of nice knowing that there wouldn't be anyone in our room while we were gone. I usually like to keep things nice and organized anyway so we really didn't miss the daily maid service.

Welcome to the DIS, hope this helps.

<font face="Class Garmnd BT"><font color="ff69b4"><big>Jennybºoº benny</big></font>
<font color="9400d3">~~DVC Member~~
Onsite: Poly '76, Contemp '98, BWV '99, CBR '00, BWV '00, CBR '01
Offsite: '74 '80 '82 '88
Next trip: BWV~June '01, ASM/BWV~Nov '01</font>
<a href="http://people.ne.mediaone.net/jsmith12/jillian&kylecharacterpage.html">Jillian & Kyle's Disney Character Website</a></font>

 

[PamOKW]

It sounds a lot scarier and complicated than it really is.

You have to plan just about any vacation, don't you? Some people spend time calling Disney over and over trying to get the best deal on a room. With DVC you don't need to do that.

You get used to tracking your points and it's not that much of a problem. It's especially easy if you generally take vacation the same time(s) of the year. You may already be doing this and not even realize it. Think about when you usually go. I found myself almost always going in early May for quite a few years. I joined DVC and just started making the plans instead of wondering whether I could afford to go again the next year.

A good idea is to think about when you are likely to go. Call and make your plans. If something changes, then you reschedule. I haven't traded out yet. It sounds like this does take some more advanced planning, depending upon where you are trying to go.

The reduced maid service, as I see it, is a non-issue. I was shocked at first to hear we wouldn't get daily maid service but it hasn't been a concern at all.

It does sound like BWV has been difficult lately, at least for some people. If that is where you must stay every trip then it's best to purchase that resale as your home resort. If you like the looks of OKW or WLV purchase there. If they all appeal to you, you might want to consider price and other factors.

I'm uncomfortable with the idea of renting out my points to strangers. If I find myself with extra points I'd rather work out something with friends and relatives to share the magic a bit or explore the other non-DVC options. I think it's best to try to use your points than to worry about renting them out.

 

[drusba]

You have to keep track of what you are doing with your points but it is not that hard and the bigger problem members face is wanting to use more than the points they have for more frequent or longer trips (and thus "borrowing" points) than not using what they have. You are better off (but not lost) if you can make your ressies well in advance using the 11 month window as much as possible. I personally consider the lack of maid service a downside; but if you consider not having it a major disadvantage you should note that you can purchase it separately for any one or more days you are there ($25/$30/$40 per day for a studio/1BR/2BR). I have not personally ever rented but it appears many have success doing so when they will not use points.

 

[Werner Weiss]

It can get complicated if you own multiple contracts with different use years or different DVC resorts. It can also be complicated if you make reservations with borrowed points, then cancel those reservations, and then find you only have a limited amount of time to use those points because you can't bank them back to their original year.

If you have a reasonable number of points, all with the same use year, at a single DVC resort, and you use approximately that number of points every year (borrowing and banking as needed), it's really pretty simple. Yes it takes some advance planning and record keeping.

Just don't miss the banking deadlines if you have leftover points during some years!

-----
Werner Weiss, Curator of Yesterland, featuring discontinued Disneyland attractions

 

[wdwnut]

hi: leftover points? what are they? LOL-only kidding. we even did a 150 pt. add-on this fall (one son is using 148 of them for part of his honeymoon at wdw this summer). see what i mean about leftovers? whenever we call to make a ressie, ms always tells us how many points it will be, where the points are coming from (current,banked or borrowed), and what if any our remaining current points are. we, too, generally go the same times of the year, so it's really been stress-free. bwv are a bit harder to book than okw (there's less bwv units available), and certain times of the year are harder to get. it really depends on when you like to travel; we travel off-peak (may, sept. usually).

 

[NancyDVC]

No, it's not that hard to keep track of your points. (Unless you own at multiple resorts and have complicated reservations.) I was able to 'use up' expiring points with a quick weekedn trip to NYC and stayed at The Plaza. It was in March (the end of my April use year) and I had to use up some banked points. If you go to WDW several tiems /year and stay at different resorts in different size units then you may need to keep track of your points but I've been a member since early 1992 and have never had that problem!
Go for it!

NancyDVC

 

[normr]

There are strict banking deadlines, you can't just bank you points at the end of your use year, you must follow the guidelines.

For example:

7-12 months in advance of use year end you can bank 100% of your points

4-6 months in advance of use year end you can bank 50% of your points

3 months in advance of use year end you can bank 25% of your points

2 months or less You can't bank any.

So lets say you have a 300 point contract, when there is still 3 months left in your use year, you can bank up to 75 points, if you more points left, you would either have to use them for a reservation yourself, or rent them if you can get the ressie before the points expire.

 

[mam543]

Thank you, everybody, for your insight. Maybe I'm just a nervous nellie or maybe I'm just a tightwad, but I just can't seem to shake this fear that I'm going to see plenty of points go down the drain over the years. I think my decision is really hanging over the question of how easy (or hard) it is to rent out points to others. I would feel a lot more confident if I knew I could replace unused points with cold hard cash. Has anyone had experience with renting out points? Or had experience with trying to rent points but finding no takers?

-Mark

 

[Richyams]

I rented out extra points twice. I didn't even have the ease ond convienence of the rent/trade board here. I did it on the alt.disney.vacation.club newsgroup. It was several years ago.

I haven't had the problem since. Once I rented out like 40 points, and once 12 points.

If you look at the rent/trade board here, there seems to be many more prople trying to get points then offering them.

This was a very good decision for us. We have utilized the points at OKW, The Plaza in NYC, BWV and given away a few. We have found that we saved lots and lots of money.

"From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs", Karl Marx, pretty sick, huh?

 

[Peggy Sue]

Keeping track of DVC points is very easy! Actually, it is a lot quicker than dealing with a travel agency or searching for the best rates etc. A spead sheet can help keep things in control and help you manage your banking deadlines.

As for left over points...well, I've never personally had that problem..seems our only problem is always wanting to add on more points! lol!!

But, if you do have a few that you haven't used for a trip to the world, there is quite an extensive list of wonderful places you can exchange your points for where you can enjoy a long weekend at a beautiful bed and breakfast, or the plaza in ny...the conceriege collection list is quite extensive and a great way to use up some left over points!

Maid service..never missed it! On our first DVC trip we brought guests, so we signed up to pay for daily cleaning. After 3 days we all agreed that it really wasn't necessary and we haven't done it since. It's a snap to make up the bed and throw in a load of laundry. The great thing about DVC is it really does feel like home!

Good luck with your decision..We hope to welcome you home soon!

Have a wonderful day!

 

[dianeschlicht]

I agree with everyone that it is unusual to have left over points! I think the key is to plan how many points you expect to need each year, and purchase that amount.

As to maid service. I love the DVC method. Since my 1,2,or 3 bedroom unit feels like a home, I don't like people rumaging around in it when I am not there. I like the every 4 day thing.

Good luck with your decision.

Disneydiane

 

[BobH]

I think it will be a pleasant suprise when you learn what seems complicated about the DVC as far as point rules actually gives the system a great flexibility in making reservations. Study it - get materials from the guides and then plan to use the flexibility to your advantage!